Surely comedian Kathy Griffin did not expect all of this madness when she released the controversial photo of her posing with a fake, gory Donald Trump head. Earlier this week, the comedian shared a photo, which was taken by photographer Tyler Shields, in hopes that it would create buzz around her (in a more positive way). However, the red-head soon faced ample backlash, as even Trump critics slammed her distasteful photo shoot which you can see here.
Ever since the photo was released, Kathy has experienced major fall out. In fact, the comedian is apparently the focus of a new Secret Service probe, as the photo was inevitably taken as potentially threatening towards the current US President. In addition, several of Kathy’s contracts and shows have been cancelled, including her July 22nd appearance at the Route 66 Casino, a number of shows scheduled on her current Celebrity Run-In tour, and an upcoming gig she had booked with CNN.
After controversy ensued, Kathy released a public statement, apologizing for her insensitivity. However, this hasn’t stopped companies and people all over social media from continuing to drag her through the mud. Consequently, Kathy has now hired attorney Lisa Bloom, who held an official press conference to address the scandal.
In a statement released by Kathy via Lisa Bloom’s firm, the comedian claims that she is now being unjustly “[bullied]” by the Trump family. The statement read, “Earlier this week, Ms. Griffin released a controversial photograph of herself posing with a faux-blood mask of Donald Trump’s face. Ms. Griffin and Ms. Bloom will explain the true motivation behind the image, and respond to the bullying from the Trump family she has endured [at the upcoming conference].”
On Friday (June 2nd), Kathy joined her attorney at her press conference and spoke candidly about the whole photo incident. In tears, Kathy told the press, “I don’t think I will have a career after this. I’m going to be honest. He broke me. He broke me. And then I was like, ‘No, this is not right.’ And I apologized because that was the right thing to do and I meant it. And then I saw the tide turning and I saw what they were doing. I would never want to hurt anyone, much less a child.” Here, Kathy referred to the Trump family’s claims that Donald’s kids were shaken up by the images of Kathy and the faux blood mask (including Donald’s young son, Baron).
While Kathy Griffin continues her sympathy crusade after weathering a storm of criticism for her terrible Trump severed-head photo, sources say she’s seething about how Anderson Cooper dropped her from his CNN New Year’s Eve broadcast like a hot potato.
Sources said Griffin had expected CNN “golden boy” Cooper to stand by her, but the news network swiftly announced she was fired from the NYE broadcast with Cooper, which they’ve done together for 10 years.
TV insiders say respected newsman Cooper had no choice but to condemn Griffin’s disturbing photo shoot, in which she held up a faux severed and bloody head of President Trump.
After the controversial image of Griffin went viral, sparking widespread backlash, Cooper tweeted, “For the record, I am appalled by the photo shoot Kathy Griffin took part in. It is clearly disgusting and completely inappropriate.”
But a source said, “Kathy totally misjudged this. She truly believed that Anderson would stick up for her. She considered him a friend. While she has nobody to blame but herself, she feels somehow betrayed.” Griffin appeared in a tearful press conference on Friday where she sobbed of Trump: “He broke me.” No word about Cooper.
The buzz at CNN is that Cooper could use the opportunity of Griffin’s firing to bring his longtime buddy, Bravo’s “Watch What Happens Live” star Andy Cohen, into his NYE broadcast. Cohen also hosts “Love Connection” on Fox.
The source said, “Anderson wants Andy to co-host with him. They are already doing a multi-city tour together, they are besties and have a great rapport.” Cohen revealed that they were set up on a blind date in the early ’90s, but Cooper says Cohen blew it during their initial phone call by being “too enthusiastic.” They were later introduced by mutual friends in LA and their platonic bromance blossomed.
But sources add that Cohen “may have some contractual problems to overcome” with Bravo before he can appear on CNN with Cooper.
Good news for pop music fans. Thanks to ABC, people all around the world will have a chance to watch Ariana’s benefit concert One Love Manchester, as it will be airing on the television network this Sunday.
As you may have heard, Ariana, as well as several big name artists, will be performing in Manchester this Sunday in honor of the victims and those affected by the terrifying May 22nd attack. According to reports, Ariana will be joined on stage by artists such as: Miley Cyrus, Justin Bieber and Katy Perry. Early morning TV show Good Morning America reports that the concert will air on many “ABC stations after the NBA finals.” In addition, viewers will be able to catch it on FreeForm too.
While it is only Friday, Ariana Grande has already been spotted returning to the UK. The young pop star flew in via private plane, marking the first time that the she has been back to the UK since the scary incident (note: the bombing took place at her concert). Fortunately, along with the countless stars who have agreed to perform with Ariana, the “Side to Side” songstress also has her family and boyfriend (rapper Mac Miller) by her side.
You can catch Ariana, and all of the other singers, perform in Manchester this upcoming Sunday on ABC (as well as several of their other stations).
HBO responded Saturday to backlash after “Real Time” host Bill Maher used the N-word during his show, with the network calling his comment “inexcusable.”
Maher was having a back-and-forth with Sen. Ben Sasse, R-Neb., when the senator invited the liberal talk-show host to visit his state.
“We’d love to have you work in the fields with us,” Sasse joked.
Maher responded, “Work in the fields? Senator, I’m a house [expletive].”
Some in the audience groaned and a few clapped. Maher appeared to quickly reassure the audience and said, “No, it’s a joke.”
“Bill Maher’s comment last night was completely inexcusable and tasteless,” HBO officials told the Hollywood Reporter. “We are removing his deeply offensive comment from any subsequent airings of the show.”
The New York Times reported that the word was not cut out during HBO’s rebroadcast at midnight.
Sasse did not address the comment and the two moved on to another subject. Sasse faced some criticism on social media for not quickly condemning the host’s comments.
And why did the audience think it was okay to laugh? And Ben Sasse doesn't even flinch. What is happening in the world?
— deray (@deray) June 3, 2017
Deray Mckesson, an activist for Black Lives Matter, took to Twitter, saying, “But really, @BillMaher has got to go. There are no explanations that make this acceptable.”
Maher was criticized last month for comments he made about President Trump and his daughter Ivanka.
The host made his most recent controversial comments the same week Kathy Griffin faced fallout from a video showing her posing with a likeness of Trump’s severed head.
Griffin said the video was meant to be a pointed comeback to Trump’s remark last summer that journalist Megyn Kelly had “blood coming out of her eyes, blood coming out of wherever.”
Bill Maher has issued an apology for using the N-word on Friday’s edition of HBO’s “Real Time with Bill Maher.”
Maher said in a statement: “Friday nights are always my worst night of sleep because I’m up reflecting on the things I should or shouldn’t have said on my live show. Last night was a particularly long night as I regret the word I used in the banter of a live moment. The word was offensive, and I regret saying it and am very sorry.”
A rep for Maher said the comedian was traveling on Saturday and unavailable for further comment. He is scheduled to do a comedy performance at Indianapolis’ Murat Theater on Sunday.
The storm around Maher’s use of the phrase “house n—–” during an interview segment has been building via social media ever since the show’s 10 p.m. East Coast airing. The incident prompted some to revisit past statements from Maher about Muslims and LGBTQ people that have been widely deemed offensive.
HBO is facing calls to fire Maher. The cabler issued a statement Saturday calling Maher’s choice of words “completely inexcusable and tasteless” but stopped short of any formal sanction against the host. Maher’s apology came about two hours after HBO’s statement. According to a source, Maher was surprised by the volume of the backlash but was also motivated to take the highly unusual (for him) step of issuing a statement out of sincere regret.
As of Saturday afternoon, “Real Time” is expected to air next week in its usual 10 p.m. Friday slot.
Legendary Southern rocker Gregg Allman was laid to rest Saturday near his older brother Duane in the same cemetery where they used to write songs among the tombstones, not far from US Highway 41.
Thousands of fans lined the streets to honor the “Ramblin Man,” who was carried into Rose Hill Cemetery as a bagpiper played a somber tune. Family and friends, including musicians who played in The Allman Brothers Band over the years, gathered on a hillside overlooking his grave, which is shaded by huge oak trees.
Many shared memories of concerts, and some blared the band’s songs from their cars and trucks. One carried a sign saying “You made our soul shine. We’ll miss you brother Gregg.”
“I wouldn’t have missed this if I lived in China,” said Kelli Jo Hickman, who drove in from Murphy, N.C. She said her mom, Dixie, introduced her to the band in the 1970s, and she’s listened to their music ever since.
The funeral service was private, with room for only about 100 people inside the small chapel. Mourners, including Allman’s ex-wife Cher, filed past white columns into the peach-colored building as five black stretch limousines waited outside for the short trip to the cemetery.
Some slipped in through a back entrance. Former U.S. President Jimmy Carter had said he would attend, honoring the keyboardist who drew large crowds to campaign events during his 1976 presidential race.
Allman, who blazed a trail for many southern rock groups, died May 27 at the age of 69 at his home near Savannah, Georgia, said Michael Lehman, the rock star’s manager. He blamed liver cancer.
With Gregg at the organ and Duane playing guitar, the band began its rise to fame in the central Georgia city 90 miles south of Atlanta about five decades ago, and used to write songs while hanging out in the cemetery, Alan Paul wrote in “One Way Out: The Inside History of the Allman Brothers Band.”
“He’s somebody who has been in my life first as an artist and later as a real person since I was about 8 years old, and so it’s shocking to think of the world without him,” said Paul, 50, who interviewed Allman many times for his book.
Born in Nashville, Tennessee, Allman was raised in Florida by a single mother. Allman idolized his older brother, Duane, eventually joining a series of bands with him. Together they formed the heart of The Allman Brothers Band before Duane died in a motorcycle crash in 1971, just as they were reaching stardom.
In his 2012 memoir, “My Cross to Bear,” Allman said he finally felt “brand new” in the 1990s after years of overindulging in women, drugs and alcohol. But hepatitis C had ruined his liver, and after getting a transplant, it was music that helped him recover. Allman felt that being on the road playing music for his fans was “essential medicine for his soul,” according to a statement from the Big House, the Macon museum dedicated to the band.
Lehman said he spoke with Allman the night before he died.
“He said the last few days he was just, you know, tired,” Lehman said.
The night before he passed away, Allman was able to listen to some of the tracks being produced for his final record, “Southern Blood,” Lehman said. The album is scheduled to be released in the fall.
“He was looking forward to sharing it with the world, and that dream is going to be realized,” Lehman said. “I told him that his legacy is going to be protected, and the gift that he gave to the music world will continue to live on forever.”
Kevin Hart said his father’s drug addiction and his strong mother kept him on the straight and narrow.
Hart, who has penned the memoir “I Can’t Make This Up: Life Lessons,” told Parade, “I couldn’t do drugs if I wanted. They were sold in the neighborhood, but I couldn’t personally go out and get them . . . My mom kept me away from that.”
Hart, who has two children with an ex and one on the way with wife Eniko Parrish, added of his dad, who’s now clean, “I am who I am because of the mistakes that he made.”